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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24138403">the blurriness of being alive</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/voidteatime/pseuds/voidteatime'>voidteatime</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>This Tornado Loves You (the Hieronverse) [4]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Penumbra Podcast</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Casual Sex, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, Long-Distance Relationship, Multi, Mutual Masturbation, Unresolved Emotional Tension, Unresolved Romantic Tension, and blows off some steam, juno gets some much needed emotional support, yeah hieron's in this one</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 17:48:56</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,538</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24138403</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/voidteatime/pseuds/voidteatime</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Poetry night isn't without its hiccups.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Juno Steel/Original Character(s), Peter Nureyev/Juno Steel</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>This Tornado Loves You (the Hieronverse) [4]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1719880</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>24</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>the blurriness of being alive</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Quarantine's got me a little pent up so I wrote this spicy h/c fic in which my OC Hieron puts the THOT in 'Emotional Support Art Thot' because it makes Juno feel better.</p><p> </p><p>I haven't written smut in years, I hope I'm not too rusty!<br/>This, admittedly, is me being thirsty AF for my own character.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><br/>
<br/>
Juno stomped out of Ransom’s room wishing that the Carte Blanche’s doors could be slammed. ‘Poetry night’, as Juno and Peter jokingly called their not-so-secret rendezvous, had started out on a high note, both of them running off the adrenaline from another successful heist. But the rush couldn’t carry them through the whole night. When he caught Peter dozing off as he tried again to have some meaningful conversation that would push them beyond workplace hookups Juno finally ran out of patience. For all the fights Juno had gotten himself into over the years, this one had remarkably little steam; a quick flash of teeth, a few barbed retorts (“Why are you still in my room then? Get out!”) and it was over. But those barbs stuck deep into the flesh and stung with every step Juno took back to his own room. </p><p> </p><p><em> Well </em> <b> <em>fuck</em> </b> <em> Juno Steel for trying too hard </em> .<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>He collapsed onto his own cold bed to lick his wounds, reaching for his comms and squinting at the display that showed the time across the galaxy. 6AM in Le Verrier. He popped the earpiece into his ear and punched in the coordinates with such a ferocity the glass display threatened to shatter. The comms beeped once, twice-</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p>
<hr/><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
Normally, Hieron would have let their comms go to voicemail if somebody had the gall to call them this early, but seeing as the caller ID listed the incoming call as LADY STUBBORN, they had no choice but to pick up. They didn’t have to be pleasant about it, though.<br/>
“ <b> <em>Cosmos</em> </b>, Juno, do you know what fucking time it is?” </p><p><br/>
Hieron reached over the robot dog to the left of them to grab the earpiece to their own comms, stifling another yawn in the semi-darkness of their Le Verrier apartment. The second dog to the right of them slid off the bed with a gentle nudge of Hieron’s knee so they could sit up and rub their bleary eyes. “I know we promised to keep in touch but if you’re gonna call me at the asscrack of dawn, I’m gonna have to start reconsidering our friendship.”<br/>
<br/>
“H, so good to hear your voice!” Juno began brightly.<br/>
<br/>
“Mmmhm. What’s happened now?”<br/>
<br/>
For as long as Juno had known them, Hieron had the uncanny ability to cut to the chase. He'd later find out that ability was due to them being a literal mindeater but Juno found the targeted bluntness refreshing all the same. </p><p>"It's stupid," he began.</p><p>"Well in that case I'm going back to bed and you can call me back in three hours-"</p><p>"No! Wait!" Juno pleaded into the comms before bringing it closer to his mouth to speak in a low and self-flagellant tone. “Ransom and I got into a fight- I think it’s serious this time."</p><p>“Oh Juno, I'm sorry," Hieron sympathized, setting their comms on the counter as they drifted into the kitchen to boil water for tea, secretly envying their dogs that had both jumped back onto their bed to resume sleep mode.<br/>
<br/>
Juno rolled in his bed, staring at the cracks in the plaster placed over the thin metal wall in an attempt at hominess. "Don’t. It's not your fault, it's mine.” </p><p>"Regardless of fault, I can still feel <em> bad </em> for you. We both know how much you care about him. What was the fight over, exactly?"</p><p> </p><p> He wished he could simply reach through the comms to grab Hieron's hand so they could siphon his complaints and worries straight out of his head. But until technology caught up to allow physical contact across the couple trillion miles between Neptune and the Vedic system, there would be no convenient mindreading on Hieron’s behalf. He'd have to do this the old fashioned, rambling way. </p><p><br/>
"I- He just never listens to me when I try to talk about us! Sure he nods and smiles and <em> looks </em> like he's paying attention, but when I ask for his opinion he just flutters his lashes and it’s 'oh I'm sorry Juno, I became distracted, I love you'." His Ransom impression was far from flattering. </p><p>"How many more times before 'I love you' loses its meaning? All I asked was for him to make the goddamn effort to meet me halfway!"</p><p>Hieron clicked their kettle off and poured the water for their tea. "And? What did he say?"</p><p>Juno leaned his forehead into his hand. "He got all huffy and clipped like he does when he’s pretending he isn’t bothered but clearly is, and said- and I quote- ‘Maybe you should just give your <em> old pal Hieron </em> another call if you need to talk at somebody so badly'."</p><p>"UUUUGGGGH!" Hieron groaned so loudly into Juno's earpiece he flinched. "Juno, <b> <em>please</em> </b> tell me you didn't get into a fight with your boyfriend over me. I am <em> literally </em> lightyears away from all this."</p><p> </p><p>They steeped a bag in a glass mug, watching the near blood red tea seep out in little curling tendrils before sinking to the bottom as Juno fumbled over himself on the other end of the call. </p><p> </p><p>"He's not my boyfriend! He's- I dunno! That's what I'm saying- I don't know what we are or what we're supposed to be and he's not giving me anything to go on!"</p><p>"Shame you can't read minds; it takes <em> so </em> much of the guesswork out. There's a reason I don't date around anymore: when you know the answer to 'could this work out?' one way or the other it feels so...pointless. Spoilers ruin everything. Consider yourself lucky." </p><p>"Ch."</p><p>Hieron took a careful sip of their tea. "So you told Ransom you needed him to communicate with you better and he...communicated he was upset about our long-distance chats. That didn’t settle well with you, so you pushed back like you do and it got out of hand. Is that right? Just checking in case I need to hide my valuables better so I don’t get robbed by a petty little thief the next time your crew swings by Le Verrier." </p><p>Hieron could practically hear the tension leave Juno's body. "Got it in one. Are you sure you can't hear my thoughts over the comms?"</p><p>"I'm just a good listener," Hieron purred back, a smirk tugging on their lips and audible in their voice.</p><p> </p><p>Juno grinned faintly, shuffling to rest on his back and balance the comms on his stomach. “If you’re gonna be like that, can you at least turn the video on so I can see when you're fucking with me?"<br/>
<br/>
“Aren’t cross-galaxy video calls exorbitantly expensive?”<br/>
<br/>
“I’ll eat the cost. Captain can take it out of my paycheck or something.”</p><p><br/>
Juno blinked into the sudden light of his comms screen flaring to life. Hieron had moved into their living room with their cup of blood red tea, the comms resting on the coffee table so they could use both their hands. They sat on their couch in a kimono-style black chiffon robe embroidered with red and gold roses and bare but unshaven legs. Their hair was tousled with a few unruly cowlicks that came from sleeping with the sheets pulled over their head like a child and stubble grew in patches on their chin and jawline. Dark circles shadowed their slightly bloodshot eyes and a wrinkled pillowcase had left an indentation across their left cheek. They were beautiful.  <br/>
<br/>
Hieron smiled sleepily back at Juno, who was cast in a blueish light from the screen of his own comms. “It looks like you’re about to tell me a story about a man with a hook for a hand.”<br/>
<br/>
“Real stand-up guy, by the way. Incredible at darts, who’d have thought?” Juno swatted the small light built into the ceiling of his cubby-like bed to turn it on. “Better?”<br/>
<br/>
“There’s a handsome lady,” Hieron approved. “You look...better than I thought you would. Y’know with the running from Dark Matters and living in close quarters with Rita and the one bathroom for six people, <em> absolutely criminal by the way </em> , I expected you’d look like shit.”<br/>
<br/>
“ <em> Thanks? </em>”</p><p><br/>
The artist savored the steam rising from their tea, eyes drifting closed in contentment before they take another sip, their unpainted lips caressing the glass. Juno shifted on his back, suddenly and shamefully envious of a tea mug and aware of how dry his lips had become. </p><p>"Hey, H….did I fuck up by calling you?"</p><p>"You fucked up my sleep schedule, but if you're worried that seeking comfort from a friend after a fight with somebody you care about is <em> wrong </em>somehow, the answer is no. I always want to help, however I can. Goddamn, Juno, why do you think I answered my comms before I even had my tea?"</p><p>The new apprehension rising in Juno's chest dissolved into immeasurable relief.  "You're a treasure, Hieron…"</p><p>Hieron sighed into their tea, staring into it pensively. "If I may offer my unsolicited opinion? In order for a relationship to work, there has to be compromise. Asking Ransom to pull his own weight was the right and reasonable thing to do. But I am <em> super </em> pissed that he's made you feel terrible about it. That's <em> my </em> Juno Steel he's messing with, y'know. If I weren't on the complete other side of the galaxy I'd come over there and really give him a piece of my mind and maybe eat some of his!"</p><p>Despite himself, Juno smiled at Hieron's raised hackles. "Hey, there's no need to get dramatic, I already did that for you tonight. You're welcome." </p><p>Hieron rolled their eyes.</p><p> </p><p>Silence fell heavy like a blanket between them, Juno could hear the ticking of the analog clock hanging on Hieron's wall offscreen. He felt emptied out, but not hollow; instead a warmth filled the spaces between his ribs. He looked into Hieron's eyes and, not for the first time,  he wished there wasn't such an insurmountable distance between them.<br/>
<br/>
Hieron must have felt similarly, as they leaned in to set their mug down on the coffee table beside their comms. “What do you want now, Juno? I'm all tapped out on sage wisdom.<br/>
<br/>
“Honestly?...” Juno chewed on the inside of his lip thoughtfully, watching Hieron finger comb their bedhead out, then give up and simply pin it all up with a clip produced from somewhere. Their robe slipped partially off their right shoulder as they did so, displaying their pronounced collarbone and the beginnings of some kind of raised design across their deltoid. A tattoo? He swallowed, suddenly and selfishly consumed with the desire to see more. “...I want to see that robe on the floor.”<br/>
<br/>
Hieron froze long enough that Juno worried if he had lost the connection, arms above their head as they finished pinning their hair, body in a slight arch. The growing Neptunian sunlight, refracted through the thick glass of Hieron’s only window, cast a rainbow across their face and chest. They looked like one of their paintings, vibrant, and full of potential energy. Their eyes, impossible to miss given their magenta hue, shifted focus from somewhere off screen, then met Juno’s. A coy smirk tugged at the corner of their lips and millions of miles away, Juno felt his heart skip a beat. </p><p>Slowly, Hieron lowered their arms and turned more fully towards the camera, ignoring the fact their adjustment had made their robe slip off their other shoulder too. “Oh? So the lady finally has it in him for a bootycall.”</p><p>“The lady’s had a rough night and he’d really like a distraction courtesy of my pretty artist friend,” Juno grumbled, face red enough for even Hieron to see over the comms, then, as if remembering his manners. “Please.”</p><p>"There we go," Hieron crooned before pushing their camera back so Juno could see all of them in a single frame, rising to their feet. They untied the neat bow at their waist slowly and deliberately, grinning at Juno’s narrowed eyes and the impatient twitch of his upper lip. Juno should have guessed they would tease him the entire time— Hieron could be a terror when they wanted to be, especially when he handed the keys over to them. Finally, when he was just about to snap at them, they let the robe fall open, exposing the black lace boyshorts they wore underneath, along with the long, pale scar that curved just along the waistband.</p><p><br/>
Hieron then let the robe slide to their elbows. Juno could see the other notable scar they’d gotten courtesy of the Kanagawas; a jagged line that cut across their left shoulder, still pink and tender. It contrasted with the fainter lines of the tattoo across Hieron's right shoulder. Snake scales wrapped about their arm all the way to the back of their right hand. It suited them; Hieron was lithe and sinuous and deadly if you didn't know how to handle them properly. Juno wasn't sure if even he could handle them properly, but that wasn't going to stop him from grabbing the serpent by the tail and hoping for the best. </p><p>They gave a little wriggle that did nothing to dispel the serpentine aura to shimmy the robe off their arms and let it drop dramatically onto the ground. Hieron stood, glowing and statuesque in only their skivvies, beaming. "Ta da! Happy now, ma'am?”</p><p>"Dunno," Juno scrutinized them, a hunger apparent in his gaze as he took them in. "Think I might need to see a little more to be sure.”</p><p> </p><p>Juno knew he’d asked too much as Hieron dropped to their knees to get close to the camera, their lips pursed slightly. Their gaze sultry but concerned. “Juno, I’m not going any further if your head's not in the right place. I need to know: do you really want me to show off for you or are you just using my, er, <em> generosity </em> to justify Ransom’s jealousy? I don’t give a damn if he hates me, but I DO give a damn if you’re gonna hate yourself."</p><p>"The lecture's kind of a huge turn off, H," Juno muttered, annoyed more with himself than Hieron pumping the brakes to protect the both of them from getting hurt over his impulsiveness. They deserved better from him.</p><p>"As if I can't flip you back on like a lightswitch," Hieron retorted, baring their wolf teeth at him in a shameless grin. "I think we both need a cooldown, yeah? I gotta finish my tea before it gets cold. Fifteen minutes?”<br/>
<br/>
“I think that’s a good idea,” Juno agreed.<br/>
<br/>
“ <em> Ciao, bellissima. </em>”</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>The feed cut and Juno laid his head back against his pillow, feeling the tight twist of nerves in his stomach loosen some. He thought perhaps he could just lay here, motionless and dead to the world until his fifteen minutes were up, pretending that there was nothing outside of his bed and the idle comms sitting on top of him. The Carte Blanche’s engines thrummed in the distance as he stared up at more plaster and the recessed bunk light. He could do nothing but think over the events of the last hour.</p><p>It didn't take a genius to figure out Ransom felt threatened by Hieron, which was understandable; Juno had been remarkably forthcoming about his history with Hieron with Peter. He knew that Juno had dated the artist in his twenties, stopped talking to them for nearly a decade, and then reconnected with them somewhere in the two years since he and Peter parted ways. Hearing 'I'm friends with my ex' must have been disquieting for the thief who'd assumed he'd been the only one to ride the rollercoaster that was Juno Steel and not puke his guts out. </p><p>But if Peter could trust Juno with his name, his most precious belonging, surely he could trust Juno to not just abandon him again. Juno had no intention of replacing the thief with Hieron; certain that was the fear Peter was lashing out at. In retrospect, he could have articulated that fact better; instead of leaping to Hieron’s defense and prompting a fragile Peter to kick him out. Hieron didn’t need defending, just the opportunity to share their side of the story Peter only half-knew. <em> If </em> the thief would agree to it. He had to have faith that he would. Juno Steel wasn’t done with him yet.</p><p>He resolved to apologize to Peter with breakfast; rough conversations always went down better with bacon and coffee.<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>Juno exhaled in a steady stream, feeling the flame his chest that was so prone to flaring and burning everything down reduce into a smouldering ember. His thoughts drifted back towards Hieron and how gorgeous they had looked even unkempt, how they smiled at him when his face first flickered across their comms screen, how just a half-hour conversation with them had taken him from sick fury to docile and wanting. They provided something that Peter couldn’t: a place where he could pull back his skin and reveal the monstrous things that pulsed underneath that were irrevocably a part of him. He didn’t have to deny those parts about himself to fit some role he knew everybody else expected of him. Over the years Hieron had become a sanctuary he could escape to when he started to feel the itch under his skin that usually preceded disaster. And it’s not like they hadn’t hooked up before on Mars- things hadn’t changed then, so they certainly wouldn’t now.<br/>
<br/>
He <em> trusted </em> them. </p><p><br/>
He fixed the earpiece of his comms firmly in his ear and made the call. </p><p>"I did a bit of soul searching like you asked. On our next call, I want to loop in Ransom. I think if he got to know you, he wouldn’t feel so intimidated, or whatever his problem is.”<br/>
<br/>
Hieron hummed thoughtfully, biting their lip.<br/>
“I’d be happy to talk to him and give him some reassurance that I’m not some minx out to ‘steal his mans’. Just a friendly slut with a high Juno Steel tolerance.”</p><p><br/>
“Is that what you call it?” Juno smirked. “So, are you gonna take the rest of your clothes off or what? I’d do it myself, but y’know, endless void of space.”</p><p>"Greedy, impatient lady," Hieron chided, posing with their back facing the camera so Juno had a nice view of their shapely butt as they slipped their lace boyshorts off. They gave a little slap to a cheek since Juno couldn't, the sound sharp in the comms' earpiece. "You miss this ass, don't you?"</p><p><br/>
Juno was quiet, but Hieron caught him nodding when they glanced back over their shoulder, smug. They thought to tease him just a bit longer, but it was easy to transform his adoration into irritation if they pushed too far. So they adjusted their comms to make sure it would capture the entire scene they wanted for him.</p><p>H settled themself into a kneel on their sofa, stretching their arms back over their head and lacing their fingers together as they lengthened their spine and arched their back in a way that made their ribcage stand out. Le Verrier must have been treating them better than Mars, Juno thought, because he could no longer make out each individual rib when they stretched like this. He longed to dig his fingers into the meat of their hip deep enough to leave little red impressions from his fingertips. When they ended the stretch they made a point to bring their hands down slowly so he could see the large silver ring on the middle finger of their right hand. It wasn’t unusual for Hieron to wear jewelry while otherwise completely nude, but never this sparingly. Something was up. </p><p>As if acknowledging his suspicion, H gave a little mischievous smirk and brought their hand closer to the camera. It took Juno a second to catch on to the true identity of the geometric bar of metal across their finger, but all was made clear as Hieron pressed a button on the underside of the ring and the piece of metal started to hum. It’s a slow, rumbling kind of buzz, like that of distant thunder, not the high-pitched and grating sound of a cheaper vibrator. When they moved it away from the comms mic he could barely make it out over the constant drone of the Neptunian winds, but H reassured him the little trinket still worked by giving a test graze over their nethers and gasping sharply.<br/>
<br/>
Juno bit the inside of his lip. </p><p>After the first little tease, they focused on their chest, toying with their nipples first until they were pert and flushed pink. They sighed softly at the stimulation through slightly parted lips, their breath catching in pleasure. Their eyes stayed closed for the first bit to help them focus, but they slowly opened and met Juno's with an invitation- they were going to get off the way they liked to, and he was allowed to join them if he wanted. Or he could sit and stare and play voyeur: his call.</p><p> </p><p>Juno was enthralled by their electric gaze, unable to look away from his comms screen. He swore if he reached his hand out he could almost touch Hieron and feel their heartbeat matching his. To be passive would be squandering Hieron's gift to him. He could hear Hieron chuckle as he fumbled to grab the tiny bottle of lube from a drawer built under his bed, a shy and sheepish smile on his lips. Yes, he wanted to join them for the ride, but he couldn’t promise the same amount of showmanship and elegance. He rolled over onto his side and placed the comms between himself and the wall as Hieron politely waited in their kneeling pose. They liked seeing him get comfortable; Juno was always so tense.<br/>
<br/>
Even though he’d been invited into the scene, the very real distance between him and his partner felt so scandalous as Juno watched Hieron fall back into their rhythm, brushing their ring across their nipple and gasping. Juno huffed through his nose, noting the heat between his thighs and the telltale tenting of the sweatpants he’d worn to bed. He tucked his fingers beneath the waistband and groaned while Hieron slipped their hand down their stomach and between their legs.</p><p>The Neptunian sunlight glittered off the metal of Hieron’s vibrator ring as they continued to pleasure themself, their moaning soft and intimately close thanks to the comm's earpiece tucked into Juno's ear. The hair stood up on the back of his neck— it's almost as if they're here now, all that's missing is the heat of their breath and the sharp nip of a canine against his earlobe. Everything melted away for Juno; no fight with Peter, no Carte Blanche, no heist to complete- outside of this bed there was only darkness and stillness. He watched his friend break from teasing their clit to stretch partially off camera and retrieve a small glass vial of lube. Juno couldn’t help but chuckle, leave it to the artist to be aesthetic about that too.  After a hasty application of lube and pants slid to his knees, Juno curled his hand around his fully stiff cock as H drizzled their own lube casually over their mound and inner thighs like a chef plating a 5-star dessert.</p><p> </p><p>"Juno?" their voice drifted to him. "You still with me?" </p><p>"Y-yeah," he replied, "Goddamn, you're beautiful."</p><p> </p><p>Hieron smiled sweetly, their cheeks and shoulders flushed, causing the white lines of their snake scales tattoo to stand out. They whimper and roll their hips forward against the vibrator, brushing their clit over the singing metal. Another groan caught in Juno’s throat as he soaked up the artist’s obvious pleasure and made it his own as he stroked himself. He can’t stop watching them, and they knew it as they spread their thighs further apart to lean back and steady themself with an arm over the back of their couch. They clicked the vibe off to focus on their own manual power, the morning sun glistening off the streaks of lube on their thighs in a way that looked like molten gold. Juno felt like he was witnessing something profane, something divine; Hieron was a goddess in their private chambers, and he was the lowly mortal that dared to look upon them. Tingles rolled up his spine with every downstroke, every fluttery sigh in his earpiece as Hieron rubbed lazy circles across the lips of their pussy.<br/>
<br/>
Juno’s entire body buzzed with the surge of endorphins, causing him to feel hot and numb at the same time. Hieron slipped the fingers of their naked hand into themself and bucked against their palm, lost completely in their own pleasure, murmuring sweet swears in NeoItaliano that they usually growled at Juno while he was pinned underneath them. If he closed his eyes, he could almost imagine the heat of their bodies pressed together and the lavender smell of their favorite soap. He dug the fingers of his free hand into the mattress underneath him.<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>“Oh, god <em> Juno </em> ~” H moaned in ecstasy, and it was one sensation too many.<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>Juno gasped as he came across his stomach and dripped into the sheets. He’d tried so hard to pace himself, to outlast Hieron for once, but he’d become too greedy for release. He panted through the nose as he watched Hieron arch their back, their moan breaking and becoming silent as they come too and go limp on their sofa, a sheen of sweat glittering off their face, stomach, and chest. Not a bad sight, all things considered. They both lay in their respective hazes, simultaneously spent and nourished. The Carte Blanche rumbled idly as the world outside Juno’s bed slowly returned into focus.<br/>
<br/>
<br/>
H shifted to sprawl themself across their cushions like a hedonist emperor, letting their arm and leg drape heavily off the side. They turned their head towards their comms, face still rosy. “That...was <em> fun </em>.”</p><p>Juno rolled onto his stomach,exhausted but content, as evidenced by the half of a smile Hieron could spot with his face half-smushed into his pillow. “Y-yeah. It kinda always is but...<em> wow </em> .”<br/>
<br/>
Hieron would have preened if they felt like they could move at all. “Not gonna lie, I’m probably gonna fall asleep right here. How is it you can wear me out even from across the galaxy? You’re one <em> dangerous </em> dame, Juno Steel…”</p><p>“It’s a talent,” Juno chimed, self-satisfied.</p><p>“I should probably let you get <em> some </em> sleep, huh?” They yawned, looking so much like a big cat.</p><p>Juno caught the yawn. “Yeah- got a big day of...making up with Ransom tomorrow…”</p><p>“Mmm, you’ll be fine, I believe in you.”<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>As more of reality sank in Juno acknowledged the small truth he’d been trying to unsuccessfully smother since Hieron had picked up his call. “I miss you, H.”<br/>
<br/>
Hieron cupped the fragile truth in their hands and breathed on it to keep it warm. “I miss you too, Juno. See you next week.”<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>Juno’s comms screen blinked out and he turned off the light to simmer in the dark for a few minutes more. Sleep claimed him until the next morning when he’d get up early and make Peter breakfast.<br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thanks for reading! Kudos and comments are hella appreciated.</p><p>If you like Hieron and want to know a little more about them and their relationship to Juno, check out the rest of my "This Tornado Loves You" series!<br/>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1719880</p></blockquote></div></div>
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